Gray water for irrigation

[Sparks]

I have installed a complete irrigation system in my garden, but would like to use grey water if possible. (Water would be from the bath, shower and hand basin)

Am I allowed to use it in my own garden?

If so, do I need to do anything to the water to make it suitable for use?

The current system takes water from the roof and stores it in 2 1450 Litre containers (above ground) The filtration I have on this is a simple mesh bucket (Used for planting plants in ponds) followed by a bucket of gravel (The exit holes at the bottom of the bucket are covered with smaller pond plant pots, so the graven doesn't escape!) This then drains into a small water butt, a pump then pumps the water into one of the 1400 litre containers, this is then connected to a second one at the bottom, and a high pressure pump then delivers the water to the irrigation system.

I was thinking of installing a small tank with another pump (with a float switch) that would also feed into the 1400L containers, but was unsure if the water needed some kind of treatment to remove soap etc.?

Thanks for any advise, or pointers!

Sparks

[Andrew Gabriel]

Yes, unless you become subject to a drought order (in which case the fact that you have used it once already still doesn't give you the right to use it to water the garden).

I don't think so. Make sure you don't wash anything more than regular soap/shampoo/washing up liquid into it though.

No, but I would avoid storing gray water -- use it ASAP. Tanks which get lined with soap and fat scum are going to start smelling.

There may be some plants which don't like it (soap tends to be alkali). I have used it on my lawn without any problems in the past. I might hesitate to use it on plants grown for eating.

[Sparks]

So if there was a "hosepipe ban" I couldn't use this water? Seems a bit daft to me!!

Would using rain water, collected from the roof also be prohibited?

It's just the bathroom, so normal bathroom usage would apply, not things like Kitchen sink, washing machine or dishwasher

The water containers are made of black plastic, and have lids, so this shouldn't pose a problem really, I suppose I will only turn on the grey water pump on when there is limited rainfall (and maybe only when the storage containers are a certain % full/empty

But would the concentration of soap really pose a problem? would the average bath/shower/wash contain enough soap to cause any problems?

Not a problem now, we don't grow anything for eating (well, apart from some herbs)

Sparks...

[Mary Fisher]

That's very true. Well, not quite true enough. It stinks.

I have no such qualms and I grow vegetables with no man-made fertilisers or pesticides.

You're also right about not being legally allowed to use it when there's a hosepipe ban. I use everything I can in such a situation (except tap water which I rarely use neat anyway). It's up to your own conscience but I prefer to use waste water of many kinds to grow my food than to put it in the sewer. I don't use a hosepipe for it. And I don't water flowers or lawn (don't have grass, the hens ate it all). If we can't eat it it can die as far as I'm concerned.

Mary

Mary

[James]

I used a hose pipe to siphon bath water during a hose pipe ban a few years ago. Technically this breached the ban, but Southern Water were content for me to do this provided they had the right to inspect it. Friend were amused that I had a visit from one of their officials to see what I did with my bath water!

James

[biff]

All our grey water goes on the garden including the kitchen waste. Plants thrive on a bit of extra phosphtes from the detergents. That's the problem with detergents running into watercourses - they produce algal blooms. Can't use it if there's a hose pipe ban? If that's the law the law is an ass. We havn't got mains drainage anyway so the water company can't have it back! Our black water irrigates the land as well but after its been through a septic tank and a reed bed.

[Sparks]

Okay, if they are going be like that, I am not actually using a hosepipe, all the irrigation system is made up of...

25mm MDPE water pipe "Ring Main" under the ground, around the garden (Like they use to deliver mains water) 13mm "Delivery pipe" 4.6mm "Supply Pipe"

The lawn is watered with the pop up sprinklers, the beds are watered with little sprinklers and the pots are watered with drippers

Would this be prohibited in a "hosepipe" ban? In which case, should I fill my water containers with mains water, as long as it does not go through a hosepipe?

Sparks...

[biff]

I can see that they might have a case if you deliberately left your bath tap running and then watered your garden with the 'grey water' during a drought, but come on, there has got to be some common sense left in the world.

[Chipmunk]

Yes, but due to a *severe* shortage, a ban on 'common sense delivery by hosepipe' has been in effect for central and local government in the UK for most of the last couple of hundred years

And Sparks, sadly the ban also applies to lawn sprinklers I believe. I would be dubious of using grey water in a sprinkler system anyway, depending on the hardness of your water, soap scum can build up and clog the heads (although your filtering system may well take care of that). Contacting the water company anonymously might be an option, see what they say with regards to the issue.

[Sparks]

Bugger, how about small flower bed sprayers (Not sprinlkers :-) and drippers like these

would be dubious of using grey water in a sprinkler system anyway,

We live in a reasonably hard water area, however we do have a water softener, so the water that is used in the bathroom is very soft.

I have just written an email to someone at the environment agency, as their website has information about harvesting rainwater, hopefully they can help!

Sparks...

[Chipmunk]

I think they're likely your best bet, the only information on exactly what a hosepipe and sprinkler ban actually applies to that I can find, is very very vague in the best tradition of UK legislation and regulations:-)

[Andrew Gabriel]

Hum, I wonder if this might cause a problem with gradual contamination of the soil with the resulting sodium ions (assuming your softener is an ion exchange type)?

[Sparks]

Yes it is (I think! - I put salt in it!)

[bigcat]

that salt ends up in your grey water, and sodium chloride has the same effect as sodium chlorate. Vey dilute so it takes years to have an efect, but yes it does.

Thats one of the probs with grey water, you have to be fussy about what you let get in the water.

There are many plants that will still grow ok, but not all. If you wanted a mint pond or reed bed I believe you could use it for those. And many other things.

NT

[Mary Fisher]

I was wondering that too ...

Mary

[graham]

The rules can be silly.

My parents used to have a swimming pool in the back garden. This was during the 1977(?) drought.

Under the rules we were allowed to use hundreds of gallons of water in order to keep the pool topped up, but the neighbours couldn't use a garden sprinkler.

The water system failed on several occasions. We used to leave the back gate open and neighbours would come around with a bucket and take water from the swimming pool.

Graham

[graham]

I recently purchased from Sainsburys a device called "protector" from Finish.

It is a little plastic device that clips inside the dishwasher. Apparently, it realises something into each wash that is designed to protect glasses from going hazy.

It says on the box: "use detergent, rinse agent and salt or 3in1 product as usual (Salt not available in Australia or New Zealand)"

I gather from a previous thread that in Australia they are having problems with the levels of salt in water.

Graham

[Lobster]

How did SW even know about it (or were you just super-honest and contacted them before doing it)?

[James]

Siphoning the bath meant it was more convenient to leave the hose pipe outside on display for extended periods of time. I contacted them to avoid any subsequent misunderstandings.

James

[Mary Fisher]

That's a good idea.

I don't know anything about SW but Yorkshire Water is very supportive of the environment and I'm willing to be guided by them. I certainly don't feel the need to use any kind of water on decorative parts of the garden (such as they are) but I do carry much waste water to the vegetables. We pay for it, we make the most of it.

Mary